Jay Jolley says why he agreed to come to Utah during the 2002 Winter Olympics is beyond him. "It sounded good when we were planning the trip," said Jolley, assistant director for London's Royal Ballet School.
"But, oh, well," Jolley said during a telephone interview from his office in London before leaving for Utah. "This is such a great experience."
Twenty-six students from the prestigious ballet school will present public performances in the Granite High School auditorium beginning tonight. The performances, which will continue Thursday and Friday, will begin at 7 p.m. and will culminate a series of workshops Jolley and his students have been conducting with various dance students and teachers in Utah.
"The kids are so excited to be a part of this and come to Utah," said Jolley, a Utah native who was born in Payson, and later, danced with Ballet West from 1971 to 1974. "We are planning to provide a real mix of magnificent choreography in these programs."
Jolley said he got into dance as a child after he mortified his mother with an impromptu war dance. He later made his way to New York after being with Ballet West. There, he joined American Ballet Theatre and soon after began dancing with New York City Ballet. There, he met the Rudolf Nureyev.
"Rudy told me that I was wasting my time and that I should go to London," Jolley said. "So I did."
Within three years, Jolley was a principal dancer of the Royal Ballet and has been a part of its school ever since. "I love the training that goes on with the students. I love seeing what three years can do.
"We get students that we think are so hopeless, but by the time they graduate, they are just beautiful."
OUT AND ABOUT: Jon Stewart, host for the Feb. 27 Grammy Awards on CBS, couldn't resist an Olympic comment as he was about to commence a telephone interview: "I will not make any remarks about my controversial gold medal," Stewart said, adding that that there was nothing going on between him and the French judge.
• So what do you do when you can't find something you want to purchase in the Olympic SuperStore on Olympic Square? You ask the employees. Although they might be as frustrated as you. One employee was complaining to another on Thursday that the store was selling out of their goods. "Everything's gone," he said. "The T-shirts are gone, the sweatshirts are gone, and the vests are gone!" Of course, the owners might think that's a good thing.
DON'T MISS: Young Fine Art Studio's Outdoor Sculpture Display (600 W. South Temple). Works by Richard Young and Lena Toritch available for viewing 24 hours a day. Free.
• Gregory Isaacs, Eek-a-Mouse, D'jate and Phat City Smokers, tonight at 9, at the Ice Village, 525. 100 South. Tickets are $35 at the door.
• Corning Museum of Glass demonstration throughout the day until 11 p.m., Bud World (located at the Gallivan Center, 200 South and Main).
E-mail: scott@desnews.com
